Adams: Narine is a mystery 02 October THE Cape Cobras have made their intentions of qualifying for the lucrative Champions League clear after signing West Indian spin wizard Sunil Narine for the domestic Ram Slam T20 tournament in January. Narine is regarded as one of the best T20 bowlers in the world, and has been one of the stand-out players in the Indian Premier League for a number of years. Narine has taken 120 wickets in 93 T20 games, including a four-wicket haul (4/9) for Trinidad & Tobago last week against the Hyderabad Sunrisers in the current Champions League tournament in India. “The financial rewards in T20 are huge and, financially, the short-term challenge is to balance the books,” Cobras chief executive Andre Odendaal said yesterday. “We have to be competitive. I’d say we can’t do without an overseas professional and we were very lucky that Narine will join us after the West Indies tour of New Zealand in mid-January.” The 25-year-old has been in devastating form over the past few months, and was named the ICC’s Emerging Player of the Year for 2012 and IPL Player of the Tournament last year. Cobras coach Paul Adams said, after studying the congested international fixture list, it dawned on him Narine would be available to play in Cape Town. “Most of our internationals should be available for the Ram Slam and we asked ourselves the question, who would best complement them? Sunil’s strength is that you can bring him on to bowl at pressure moments in the innings and he still strikes and keeps the run rate down,” Adams said. “He is something of a mystery, something different,” said Adams. “He’s one of the top players in the Champions League and the world’s best T20 bowler.” Speaking from India, where his home team Trinidad and Tobago are still in the hunt for a semi-final spot in the Champions League, Narine said he is excited about playing in South Africa. The Cobras’ first game is on January 10 against the Titans in Centurion. “I’m looking forward to working with Paul Adams and the guys in the new year. South Africa has one of the toughest leagues in the world, so it will be a big test for me.” Narine said. “The Cobras look to have a serious squad of players and hopefully I can contribute.” – Sapa
Posted on: Thu, 03 Oct 2013 06:35:49 +0000
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